Arts

John Michael Kohler Arts Center

“Unforgettable,” “inspiring,” “magical and fun for our entire family,” and “my all-time favorite museum” are examples of how visitors talk about the John Michael Kohler Arts Center. Architecture critic Whitney Gould described it as a “sassy, classy tour de force,” The facility comprises 12 galleries, 2 performance spaces, 5 studios for classes, several spaces for special events, the ARTcafe, 2 extensive gift shops, whimsical sculpture gardens, and “America’s Best Bathrooms,” according to ABC’s Good Morning America. Up to 30 exhibits each year explore themes such as messages and magic, civil liberties, home and the American story. Current exhibitions on view include Hiding Places: Memory in the Arts (June-December). For a riveting performing arts experience, visit www.jmkac.org for a calendar of events and ticket information. Admission to the Arts Center is free, but donations are appreciated. The Arts Center is located at 608 New York Avenue; (920) 458-6144.

Stefanie H. Weill Center for Performing Arts

There’s nothing more inspiring than dinner and a show, and live performing arts thrive in Sheboygan. Visit the fabulously restored Stefanie H. Weill Center for Performing Arts, where an array of national acts perform throughout the spring, fall and winter seasons. All year round, slip into the comfort of nostalgia as some of the biggest silver screen actors adorn the Weill Center every third Friday for Movie Night. Classics such as Finian’s Rainbow and The Sunshine Boys make for a romantic evening sharing a bucket of the Weill Center’s famous old fashioned theatre popcorn. Visit www.weillcenter.com for show calendar and ticket information. The Stefanie H. Weill Center for Performing Arts is located at 826 N. 8th St; (920) 208-3243.

 

James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden

James A. Tellen created over 30 historic, religious and mythic figures within the woods surrounding his family’s summer cottage in the Black River area of Sheboygan, Wisconsin. Featuring both life-size and miniature characters in a whimsical natural environment,  the stone sculptures represent a realism that Tellen purposely strived to achieve.

Tellen was adopted at an early age and lived with his family in Sheboygan. He was a factory worker charged with the duties of painting fine detail on furniture. He was a night student at an industrial school for six years. It’s believed that Tellen’s concrete sculping started with “Fallen Log,” his 65-foot-long trompe l’oeil masterpiece of weathered logs, an immense bear, two clambering bear cubs, and the dramatic figures of a Native American man, woman and child.

Tellen’s family cottage grounds are adorned with his works delighting art admirers of all ages to this day. After his passing 1957, Tellen’s self-created natural art environment nestled in the forest is described as “one of the finest exhibits of outdoor art in the state.” The James Tellen Woodland Sculpture Garden is also part of the Wandering Wisconsin–Arts, Stories, Adventure Tour–a driving tour of spectacular natural art environment through southern Wisconsin, along the Lake Michigan shoreline, into the northern woods and back along the Wisconsin’s mighty Mississippi River border. Click here for driving direction and printable map. For more information, contact the John Michael Kohler Arts Center at 608 New York Avenue; (920) 458-6144.